Day 2: Bohol Countryside Tour

The idle time on our first day gave us the chance to recharge and prepare for a busy countryside tour the following day. We availed the resort’s worry-free tour package which already includes the room accommodation, daily breakfast, round trip transfer and the country side and sea tours. Both tours already include the transportation and entrance fees.

We woke up early to catch the resort’s breakfast buffet and to make it on time for our 9 am call time. We were assigned to Kuya Jesse – our driver and tour guide in one. We were not grouped with other tourists so we had full control of our time.

Kuya Jesse gave us a lot of interesting stories – from geography to history and even showbiz gossips.

I got really excited when Kuya Jesse told us that our first adventure for the day was to see some tarsiers. I’ve long been curious at how they really look in real life.

We were welcomed by a guide who gave some reminders. He said that we can take pictures but the camera’s flash must be turned off. He also said that tarsiers are nocturnal animals but we could still see a few who are on day shift. Haha!

Emo Tarsier

Everybody had the same reaction. We were all surprised that the tarsiers are that tiny because we were expecting them to be quite bigger than their actual size. I then remembered that my Biology teacher said that tarsiers are roughly the same size as doorknobs.

We wanted to touch the tiny creatures but it was prohibited. So taking photos with them was the closest we could get.

Two Tarsiers

After our close encounter with the tarsiers, Kuya Jesse made a quick stop at the man-made forest. According to him, the trees were planted 50 years ago by some boy scouts to aid reforestation. Some people may think that there’s nothing really special with the place. But it’s mysterious look made me feel that I’m part of a mythical movie. Ok fine, I was thinking of Twilight! :p

Kuya Jesse then brought us to the Butterfly Sanctuary. I wasn’t so enthusiastic because I’ve been to a lot of butterfly gardens.

The only interesting thing I got from that tour was my discovery that there are gay butterflies. The photo below shows a gay butterfly. Our guide said that their hind wings are distorted and their life span is shorter than "normal" butterflies. I have to say that the butterfly sanctuary we visited in Palawan was more interesting.

The tour guide assigned to us was very funny although he was obviously paying more attention to the kids who were also with us in the tour. (Oh yes, I was jealous!) Because of this, we ran away from our group, took a few more photos and rushed back to the car for our next destination.

Kuya Jesse told us that our next stop would be the Chocolate Hills. I already knew that we were already close because I started seeing the hills from our car. Kuya Jesse kept on telling us that the we need to endure 214 steps to reach the top of the viewing deck.

Since we went there on a long weekend, every spot in Bohol was crowded. And the Chocolate Hills viewing deck was definitely not an exception. The photo below is a proof to that.

Notice how I still managed to smile after the first few steps. Then I started feeling dizzy because of the crowd and the scorching heat. We were just approaching the second stop when I already asked Boyet if we could take a rest. And then I took more breaks every stop. We could already see the hills from the second stop so I asked Boyet to go ahead and just come back for me. :p

As I was resting, I thought of the legend which says that there was once a giant who fell in love with a beautiful maiden. The giant grieved when his beloved died. His tears fell non-stop, and poof! They became Koko Crunch! Errr... I mean Chocolate Hills! :p

I already felt like throwing up. I was about to give up but Boyet kept on telling me that we're almost on top.

I breathe a sigh of relief the moment we reached the top. No amount of postcards and history books can suffice the experience of seeing the Chocolate Hills in real life!

Because of an earlier mix-up, we decided to leave "our" tripod. That's why we don't have a lot of photos together. So thanks to Manong Photographer for agreeing to take a photo of us.

The hanging bridge was our next destination. I was seriously expecting it to be like the ones in horror movies – secluded and scary. I laughed after seeing how commercialized the place is having vendors at both ends of the bridges.

Then again, the place was crowded. Thoughts of the bridge collapsing really crossed my mind. Some people intentionally rocking the bridges did not help ease my mind. But I have to say that it was one heck of an experience!

Other than seeing the Chocolate Hills, the Loboc River Cruise was the next thing that I was very much looking forward to. Being a popular tourist spot, the place was really cramped during our visit. Tour guides were running here and there.

There are four floating restaurants to choose from. We arrived past lunch time but Kuya Jesse told us that the earliest he could get for us was the 2 pm ride. From the tone of his voice, he was trying to discourage us. But I didn’t travel all the way to Bohol to miss that chance. So we waited patiently.

We boarded before 2 pm. The boat then made a quick stop to refill their supplies. After a few minutes, the cruise continued. We then saw a group of people wearing yellow clothes. From afar, I initially thought it's a school and a program is being held. We saw some of them in a raft waving cheerfully at us. I realized my first assumption was wrong when the boat made another stop in front of the raft.

Tinikling :)

There was nothing spectacular with the food. But it was good enough for people who already delayed lunch for two hours. They served vegetables, barbecue, crabs, pansit and different kinds of fruits. But Boyet and I agreed that the fried chicken stole the top spot.

We were almost done with our lunch the moment we reached the falls. It was also the queue for the boat to return to its starting point.

Two singers entertained us during our cruise. Their repertoire includes songs of Stephen Bishop, Eraserheads and Bruno Mars to name a few. Their songs hyped up everybody’s moods. People from other boats kept on waving at us.

They ended our cruise singing Katy Perry's Firework. The people from other boats and those who were in the waiting area sang gleefully with us. It was an enjoyable cruise indeed.

I was already exhausted so I just nodded when Kuya Jesse told us that we're off to see some pythons. And why would I be excited to see snakes? But then again, my husband was brave enough to have close encounters with them!

Baclayon Church, one of the oldest churches in the Philippines, was our next destination. Kuya Jesse parked the car and pointed what looks like an image of Padre Pio in one of the church's pillar.

We offered some prayers. I thanked God for allowing me and my husband to see the beauty of traveling together. And since it was my first time in Baclayon Church, I was entitled to make a wish. :)

We then went straight to the Blood Compact Site. It is believed to be the site where the blood compact between Datu Sikatuna and Miguel Lopez de Legazpi took place. So how many times have I mentioned that every spot in Bohol was crowded when we were there? We went there to take pictures but we were not fortunate in taking a single decent photo.

There is an additional charge if we exceed 8 hours in the tour. We rushed to buy some pasalubong and went back to the resort. The car's clock read 4:55 when Kuya Jesse dropped us off in the resort! Buzzer beater! :)